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Positioned alongside the banks of the Mystic River, possibly a half-dozen miles north of the ever-increasingly gentrified coronary heart of Boston, Massachusetts, lies the historically working-class metropolis of Medford. As soon as the house of Amelia Earhart and Elizabeth “The Black Dahlia” Brief and the man who wrote “Jingle Bells,” it’s now the house to one in every of yours really’s favourite new venues…Deep Cuts! As soon as the location of one of many area’s 729,038 Italian eating places, it’s now an ever-evolving sandwich store/brewery/report store/pinball arcade/240-cap music venue, the likes of which the world so desperately wanted after the shuttering of so many equally sized venues within the large metropolis. It was the proper kind of venue for a high-octane three-band-bill as The Drowns introduced their rock-and-roll roadshow by way of the world final Wednesday evening, with regional help from Worcester’s Michael Kane and the Morning Afters and newly-reformed River Metropolis Rebels, who I suppose hail from elements all-over at this level given the variety of shifting elements who’ve hung out in RCR over the past couple of many years.
I’ve been a fan of the hard-working, blue-collar Drowns since a kind of first flexis confirmed up in a care bundle from the inimitable Pirates Press most likely 4/5 years in the past. I feel it was “The Sound” possibly, and it was printed on an outdated shot of Kingdome-era Seattle and it was simply one other instance of one of many endlessly inventive issues that label spits out. ANYWAY, this one way or the other marked the primary time I’d seen them on this neck of the woods, and let me inform you…I preferred them earlier than, however I like them now. The Drowns are strong on report, however Rev and the gang (stalwarts Andy Wylie on bass and Jake Margolis – who I had final seen with the Shell Company simply a decade in the past – now joined by Josh Dale on 2nd guitar) are at their greatest on a stay stage. They’re consummate highway canines, and they’re dyed-in-the-Fred-Perry unapologetic anti-fascist, anti-racist punk rock lifers. On this evening, they blazed by way of a set that peppered a wholesome dose of tracks from their newest report, Blacked Out, with a bunch of the classics. Private favorites included “Ketamine & Cola,” “Simply The Means She Goes,” and the brand new album’s title monitor. Additionally thrown in for good measure had been a rousing cowl of The Candy’s “The Ballroom Blitz” – which is a track I’m sufficiently old to recollect, and a pit-inducing cowl of Cock Sparrer’s “Riot Squad” that introduced festivities to a rousing conclusion.
Michael Kane & The Morning Afters opened a couple of week’s price of The Drowns’ northeast dates, together with this one (naturally). They may not play 200 dates a 12 months like The Drowns do, however in some ways, the 2 bands are very a lot kindred rock-and-roll spirits. Showing as a keyboardless four-piece on this run, Kane and his longtime wingmen Franklin Siplas (guitar), Timmy Weagle (bass) and Jeff Hoey (drums) have carved out a fairly strong Petty-meets-Replacements area of interest for themselves, which means they’re proper at house on all kinds of payments. The setlist on this explicit evening was fairly uncooked and rocking, together with “Carol Kaye” and “Cooking The Books” and private favourite “Darkish Nights,” all from their final full size, Broke However Not Damaged. Oh, and naturally there was a canopy of Petty’s “American Lady” that was fairly true to the unique, killer guitar solo included. I simply want Franklin had busted out the Yamaha Revstar!
The opening slot on this evening was occupied by none aside from the River Metropolis Rebels. Initially from Vermont (I feel), the band have taken on just a few completely different iterations with greater than a handful of various members in between hiatuses through the years; Dying Scene’s personal Dan McCool even did a stint again across the flip of the century. There was a kind of ska-punk period and there was a extra rockabilly period in there. The present period of River Metropolis Rebels consists of Dan O’ Day on the helm with Marc Coutu and Izze De Simone on guitar, Kody Samborn on bass and Adam Allard on drums, they usually’ve locked in on a extra late-70s, Decrease East Aspect, New York Dolls kind of vibe, provided that New York Dolls additionally grew up on 80s Boston avenue punk.
All in all, it was the sort of uncooked and enjoyable and dealing class rock and roll occasion that I’ve typically lamented doesn’t actually exist on this capability and on this space anymore. And possibly it nonetheless doesn’t down the highway within the “large metropolis.” Nevertheless it actually does in locations like Deep Cuts in Medford. Bonus factors for me not even having to take the freeway. Attempting one thing a little bit completely different with the slideshows under, so hold scrolling and take a look at some extra pictures of the night’s festivities!
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